User blog:Mysterypine/SkeletalWings
YOU MAY NO LONGER MAKE SKELETALWINGS. =Rules= You may create normal SkeletalWings with the average abilities or coloration without special permission, but please follow their general description and don't bend it too much. You must ask to create a SkeletalWing character that is abnormal in any way, which includes but is not limited to the following: *Hybrid *High Ranks (Nobles, Spirit Guardian Successor, Etc.) *Deformed/Handicapped *Moonborn Dragons *Cursed =Description= SkeletalWings are relatively small compared to most tribes of dragons, with the tallest being slightly shorter than a RainWing and the shorter being slightly smaller than a SeaWing. They have a slim build, a lot like a RainWing, but slightly thinner. They are built for living among and climbing trees, with strong legs, sharp, curved claws, and long, prehensile tails. Their heads are similarly shaped to a SilkWing's, but they have shorter, more rounded snouts, two sharp fangs protruding from their mouths, and two sharp spikes on each of their cheeks, with a short spike on top and a longer one below it. Their horns are shaped similarly to a mountain gazelle's, but are much longer and have smaller horns branching off of them, making them appear similar to a deer's antlers or a dead tree. Their eyes are teardrop or almond-shaped and have black pupils/scleras and black, gray, white, or extremely dark red irises. Their scales are extremely thin, so thin in fact that you can see their insides, but are surprisingly hard, comparable to minerals such as Apatite, Orthoclase, or Quartz. The color palette for their scales is quite limited and is primarily achromatic, with common colors being black, white, and gray. Occasionally, there are a few other colors, but they're all earth tones such as browns, greens, and gray-blues. Their wings are quite large for the small dragons they are attached to, but don't have to be fully opened to fly, which is especially useful for when they are trying to glide through the forest. =Abilities= Normal Abilities: Adaptations for Forest Living - Able to fly/glide without their wings fully open, prehensile tails, skilled climbers, amazing night vision Can breathe a thick, irritating mist that can cause stinging/itching in a dragon's scales for up to two hours after contact and can cause death if it gets in the bloodstream. Moon Born Abilities: Much like the NightWings, SkeletalWings can be given powers when they are born under a certain moon phase. However, instead of being given powers when born under full moons, they are given powers when they are born under new moons. Being born under one new moon grants Death Prediction or Dream Walking, being born under two grants both, and being born under three grants both and either Spirit Communication or Spark Creation. Death Prediction - This power gives a dragon the ability to predict the exact time and method of death for anyone in the tribe, including dragonets that haven't yet hatched. Dream Walking - Pretty much like what happens when a dragon uses a Dreamvisitor, but dragons with this ability can do it without one. Spirit Communication - Dragons with this power are able to talk to the spirits of the dead. Being born with this ability can often get a dragon a high rank, due to death being an important part of SkeletalWing culture. Spark Creation - Spark Creation is another important ability to the SkeletalWings. Due to their home lacking light and the tribe lacking fire, anyone born with the ability to create light is highly honored by the group. Spirit Guardian Abilities: Spirit Guardians are the most powerful members of the tribe, with all of the above abilities as well as the abilities of animal communication and plant control. However, if they use their abilities too much, it can weaken them to the point of death. Therefore, they try to avoid using them unless it is completely necessary. =Naming= SkeletalWings can be named after quite a few things. These things can relate to any of the following: death (Morgue, Cemetery, Etc), darkness (Shadow, Blackout, Etc), types of bones (Skull, Femur, Patella, Etc), and types of spirits (Ghost, Poltergeist, Ectoplasm, Etc). They can be named after other things, but those are the most common ones. =Combat= SkeletalWings usually choose not to fight due to respect for their Death Predictors and Death Speakers, who are highly effected with visions of death and voices of the dead when a battle happens on SkeletalWing land. However, when they must fight, their skills can be compared to a mix of SkyClan and ShadowClan from Warriors, due to their tree-based combat and how the ones with darker scales tend to use the darkness of their home to their advantage. Training Young SkeletalWings who plan to become soldiers are trained to use their natural enviroment to their advantage. They use the trees to their advantage by learning things like how to drop from branches to land on their enemies and the darkness to the advantage by learning how to stick to the darkest shadows to catch their enemies unaware. They also learn to take as light of steps as possible in order to moves as silently as possible. Military Branches SkeletalWings do not have organized military branches, due to their usual avoidance of war. =History= Unknown to all but the Spirit Guardian and their Successor. =Architecture= They live in buildings made of stones, clay, and occasionally a special type of pulp made from the dead leaves and pine needles that litter the forest floor. However, they never build using wood, which is explained in their urban legend, The Trees Cry Blood. =Territory= SkeletalWings live in a shadowy forest where not many other dragons dare to venture. Most of the trees have jet black bark like they've all been scorched in a fire and are either entirely leafless or have small clusters of dead leaves waiting to fall onto the forest floor. The only exceptions are the fir trees, which are covered in ghostly white-gray needles. The forest floor is covered in layers of natural debris, such as dead leaves, fir needles, and gritty soil made from a mix of decomposed plants. There are also a few patches of grass here and there, but they're either dried out and brown or a sickly white color, it's extremely rare to find any normal grass here. The forest is quite dark for multiple reasons, the first one being that the sunlight doesn't reach the ground. In fact, most SkeletalWings go their whole lives without seeing the sun, due to how high they'd have to climb to reach an area where the sun actually shines. The other reason for the eerie darkness is the fog that always seems to be hanging over the forest. Nobody's quite sure why the fog is there, most of the tribe thinks it's the work of the dark spirits that haunt the woods, waiting for a victim to get lost in the darkness, though the more scientific members of the tribe believe it is just because the sun doesn't reach the forest floor and therefore the fog can't evaporate. The only natural light in the forest comes from luminescent mushrooms, moss, and algae, though even those are quite rare. Landmarks The forest doesn't exactly have clearings, though there is a good sized pond in the middle of the lower territory's forest where the trees aren't so thick, but still cover the area well enough that light doesn't come through very well. The water in the pond is black and murky with a huge fallen tree laying across it, starting at the mainland and resting on the shore of the tribe's hatchery island. The island is the only area light reaches, due to it's unexplained lack of trees, so it's the best place to put eggs so that they might recieve moonborn powers. Settlements The Pond Settlement The Pond Settlement is where the majority of the SkeletalWings live. It is located around the hatchery pond in southern SkeletalWing territory. It has mostly been left to the wilderness, with only small houses and a couple restaurants and shops along the pond's shores. A lantern hangs from each of the trees surrounding the pond, allowing the town to stay lit as long as the Light Bringers uphold their duties. The Forest of The Dead The northern territory, The Forest of Death, somehow manages to be even creepier than the rest of the territory. This is due to the primary structures there being mausoleums and the crumbling ruins of abandoned buildings. There's only one structure in this part of the territory that isn't uninhabitable or housing the deceased, and that is the Spirit Guardian's house. The Spirit Guardian's house is quite well lit, due to Spirit Guardians and their successors having the ability to create light with a flick of their talons. There are lanterns strung up all along the outside and at least one in each room on the inside. =Education= SkeletalWings don't get a traditional education in a classroom. Instead, dragons who have chosen the role of a Forest Keeper teach the dragonets about the forest and its legends to help preserve the tribe's home and keep the dragonets safe. =Notable Historical Members= Spirit - The First Spirit Guardian. Before she was born, the SkeletalWings were just a disorganized mess of what could only loosely be called a tribe. That was until the night she hatched, a night of three new moons as well as an extremely bright "fourth moon." These conditions made her the first dragon with Spirit Guardian abilities and later allowed her to become the first Spirit Guardian, bringing the SkeletalWings into the era of the organized kingdom they live in today. It is said to be her ghost that grants the Spirit Guardians their powers when they go to their ceremony, but that has never been confirmed by a Guardian, so for now it's just a rumor. =Religion= Shi - The God of Death and War Shi is the most respected of the gods/goddesses, due to his ties with death. There is an obsidian statue of him with red coral eyes in the center of The Forest of Death, carved in the shape of a huge SkeletalWing holding a scythe and wearing a black cape. Seikatsu - The Goddess of Life, Destiny, and Karma Seikatsu is the most important of the gods/goddesses when it comes to the Spirit Guardians, due to the fact that she sometimes gives them visions of the future if something terrible is soon to happen to the tribe. Her appearance is unknown, since nobody really talks about her. Yami - The Goddess of Darkness Yami is said to be the wife of Shi, and gets more respect than Seikatsu for that reason. She is also highly repected due to her connection to darkness. SkeletalWings believe that if they respect her and Shi well enough, they will be granted protection from the darkness and what lurks within. She has a obsidian statue with dark fluorite eyes carved on the same pedestal as Shi's. Hers is of a smaller SkeletalWing with a dark, metal lantern held in her right front talon. The lantern must never be lit, or bad luck will be brought to the SkeletalWing tribe. Hikari - The God of Light Hikari is not nearly respected as Seikatsu, though the Light Bringers respect him quite a lot, believing he is the one who provided them with their gifts. For this reason, every year at the Festival of The Gods, lanterns carved out of beryllonite are sold with his image carved into them. The image in the lantern depicts a small, white SkeletalWing holding a moonstone globe, which represents light. Ikimono - The God of Creatures Ikimono is the most feared of the gods, as he is said to be the one who put the creatures the SkeletalWings fear into the forest. They believe he did this as revenge for someone lighting the lantern on Yami's statue, but whatever caused it happened so many years ago that nobody remembers anymore. There's a statue of him in the center of The Pond Settlement. It's a huge, menacing black marble statue with howlite eyes and various beastly creatures carved around the base. =Urban Legends= Silk Strands This legend was started when dragonets started disappearing without a trace, many years ago. The story goes something like this: One night, about a month after the disappearances started, a group made up of the concerned friends and families of those who were lost went out to try to find them. Everything started out fine, just like a normal trip through the woods. That was, until something wet dripped out of the trees, landing on the talons of one of the dragonets' mothers. She looked down to see what it was and cried out in shock, it was a huge droplet of blood. She looked up to see where it had come from and immediately went pale. Above her, staring down with blank, glassy eyes, was her dragonet, wrapped up in silk with two gaping wounds right in his neck. And that wasn't even the end of it. There were more of them, more corpses, all wrapped in silk and all with twin wounds on their throats. And above them, a huge spider, blood dripping from its fangs, stared down at the group. Ever since then, spiders have been feared and respected among the SkeletalWings, with the tribe often making offerings to the creatures in the hopes that this event will never be repeated. The Trees Cry Blood This urban legend is the reason why the SkeletalWings refuse to build with wood. There had always been rumors that once a dragon died, they would rise again as a tree. Nobody believed that though, not until it was seemingly proven true. A group of construction workers went to chop down a few trees to build some houses, thinking everything would be normal. After all, they'd done this a million times. They couldn't have been more wrong. The first tree oozed reddish-black sap, staining the claws of the dragons who had chopped it down. Nobody thought much of it though, figuring the tree was just diseased. Though, after a while, their thinking changed. After chopping down a few more trees, they began to realize that all of them were dripping the same eerie sap and any Death Speakers in the group started hearing loud shrieks and cries for help. Since that day, the rumors were taken much more seriously, and the tribe was never to cut down another tree again. Yami's Revenge This is the story of how the horrible creatures that are said to roam the SkeletalWings' forest came to be. Many years ago, a young dragonet whose name has been lost to history decided to test the story about how lighting Yami's lantern would bring bad luck to the tribe. She had been born under three new moons and gifted with Spark Creation, so all she had to do was sneak away to The Forest of Death while everyone was asleep. It wasn't a complicated plan, but it worked and she arrived at the statue right when she'd planned to. When she got there, she didn't waste any time. She lit the lantern as soon as she could. And as soon as she did, everything took a turn for the worst. First, lightning flashed across the sky, then heavy wind and rain rattled the entire forest. Before she could go anywhere, Yami herself appeared in front of the dragonet. "You were warned," she hissed, "And now, because of you, the tribe will never be safe again." Then, she disappeared with the next flash of lightening, leaving the dragonet shaking in fear. Shortly after the disappearance of Yami, the storm ended just as abruptly as it had started. The dragonet assumed she had imagined everything, that it had all been a dream, but she couldn't have been more wrong. Not long after that fateful night, reports and rumors started flying about all sorts of horrendous creatures around the territory, things nobody had seen before that night, but were suddenly blowing up in numbers. The dragonet knew this was her fault and went back to the statue with offerings to try to apologize to Yami, but it didn't work. It was already too late and from the on, the SkeletalWings were forced to live alongside the monstrous creatures who were sent there as a result of the mistakes of one dragonet. Pretty soon after the creatures appeared, the dragonet and her family and friends disappeared. It is speculated that they became the first creatures of the forest. Creatures of The Forest: The Dragon of Shadows - This is a creature feared by many members of the SkeletalWing tribe. Many believe that this dragon used to be the dragonet who lit Yami's lantern, but nobody can be certain, due to how altered her appearance has become. She now towers over any normal SkeletalWing by a longshot and her horns are large and overgrown (both in size and by an abundance of leaves, branches, and vines), meaning she often hits her head on low-hanging tree branches and is horrible at flying and climbing. Her eyes are pure white and seem to glow with their own eerie sort of light and her horns start at an charcoal gray at their base and gradually follow a gradient effect up to their tips where they're coin gray. Fog gray mist constantly seems to flow around her talons, reaching up to her mid-leg and surrounding her by about 5' on all sides. Her wings are full of holes and shreds, giving them a very tattered and old appearance. She has a very sweet and calming voice, making it easy for her to get whatever she wants, which is often for the weak-minded dragons of the tribe to do her bidding. Her powers include the following: Magic: Often used for mind controlling her minions Umbrakinesis: Manipulation and control of darkness and shadows Umbraportation: Teleportation via shadows and darkness Shadow Mimicry: Can become a shadow Animated Shadow: Can make shadows come to life Vampires - Self explanatory/explained in The Cursed WereCreatures - Like werewolves, but can be any furred or feathered animal. =Diet= Food sources are minimal in the SkeletalWing kingdom, leading them to eat whatever they could find. This mostly consists of mushrooms, mosses, and dead leaves, but if they get the chance, they'll also eat prey such as squirrels, mice, snakes, lizards, and fish. There are also a few berry bushes scattered around the territory. Nobody's quite sure what kind of berries they are, since they don't seem to grow outside of the forest. They grow on bushes with black bark and cloud gray leaves. The berries are blood-red in color and have a sour, lemon-like taste at first, but gradually change flavor until they taste sort of like honey. =Traditions= The Spirit Guardian Ceremonies Every year after a new Spirit Guardian takes over until they choose a new one, a ceremony is held on the final day where all of the dragonets hatched that year are presented to the Spirit Guardian. There they are assessed by the Guardian and if one is chosen to be the successor, the festival lasts the whole week with games, music, contests, and a huge feast at the end. Festival of The Gods This is a festival starting on the darkest night of the year and ending a week after. This event celebrates the SkeletalWings' gods and goddesses with themed artwork contests, the sale of god/goddess-themed items, and a place for offerings. =Intertribal Affairs= SkeletalWings don't usually communicate with other tribes, since most of them are unwilling to travel into the SkeletalWings' forest. =Hobbies= SkeletalWings are quite artisan-based when it comes to their hobbies. Most of the time when they do something for fun, it's something like sculpting, painting murals, or making mosaics. Of course, hobbies vary from dragon to dragon, that art is just the most common one among the tribe. =Heirarchy= The Heirarchy of the SkeletalWings is quite different than the heirarchy of most tribes. Many of the ranks you'd see in other tribes can't be found here, because SkeletalWings have needs that regular ranks don't cover. The Spirit Guardian This is the leader of the SkeletalWings, their equivalent to the other tribes' queens and kings. Spirit Guardians can be female or male and they live in The Forest of The Dead. Spirit Guardians have the abilities of both Light Bringers and Death Speakers, as well as a few abilities exclusive to them which are given to them at a secret ceremony. When they receive their powers, their eyes turn pure white. Succession The SkeletalWings don't do Succession like other tribes. Instead, at the end of every year until a successor is chosen, a ceremony is held where all the dragonets born that year are presented to the Spirit Guardian. Once the Guardian finds a dragonet they find suitable for the power and responsibilty it takes to be the next Spirit Guardian, the ceremonies stop until the Successor takes over and they must pick their own Successor. The Spirit Guardian's Successor This is the Spirit Guardian's apprentice. They live with and are trained by the Spirit Guardian to one day become the new ruler of the SkeletalWings. They do not have to be related to the current Spirit Guardian and it is actually more common that they are not. Family of The Spirit Guardian & Their Successor This rank is counted as nobility because of their close relationships with the current and future Spirit Guardians. However, since this rank doesn't actually have a certain job or special powers, these dragons usually have a regular job as well. Light Bringers These are the dragons whose duty it is to keep the SkeletalWing village well lit. They are very important to the tribe because without them, the tribe would live in almost complete darkness. Death Speakers These are the dragons who can speak to the spirits of the dead. Due to death being a sacred part of SkeletalWing culture, these dragons are some of the most respected in the tribe. They spend a lot of time in The Forest of The Dead, though they do not live there. Forest Keepers Forest Keepers are basically the teachers of the SkeletalWings, though they aren't teachers in the traditional sense. Instead of working in a classroom, they work in the woods, gathering the village's dragonets each morning and taking them into the woods to teach them everything they need to know to survive there. These dragons are considered nobility because they help preserve the tribe's culture and keep the dragonets safe. Lantern Makers Lantern Makers have a pretty self-explanitory role, they make the tribe's lanterns. This role is considered highly important to the tribe because without them, the Light Bringers wouldn't have a job. This is the reason they are considered nobility. Artists These are the dragons who make things other than lanterns for the tribe. This can be anything from jewelry to pottery or anything else art-related. Often, during a ceremony or celebration, the Spirit Guardian will pick a team of these dragons to make the decorations for the venue and the products sold there. Citizens Citizens are the dragons of the tribe who either have no job or a job not listed on this page. Travelers These are the dragons who choose not to live with the rest of the tribe and instead choose to wander the continent. Students Students are the older dragonets (ages 5-7) who are taken into the forest by the Forest Keepers every morning to learn about the SkeletalWings' territory and legends. Dragonets Dragonets are the youth of the tribe who are too young to attend the classes taught by the Forest Keepers. The Cursed These dragons can be of any age and rank, but are most commonly very young, since they are the weakest of mind. They are the dragons who have been tricked by the creatures in the forest and are now shunned by the rest of the tribe. The Cursed often have their appearance altered in some way, but how it is altered depends on the creature that has tricked them. Dragons tricked by Werecreatures often have some feature of the animal they turn into at the full moon. These features can be anything, but are most commonly things like patches of fur or feathers and/or animal-like eyes. Dragons who have been lured in by Vampires have white, opaque scales and their whole eye, except their pupil, is deep red. The last of The Cursed are those who have been tricked by The Dragon of Shadows. They are pure, opaque black with eyes that are white, like a Spirit Guardian's, but can change color at will. They also tend to have thin, black vines around their horns. They can be under her control or acting on oath, neither of which is a good position to be in. They can be forced to do a variety of tasks, with these being the most common: Assassination - If a dragon has particularly angered The Dragon of Shadows, she will send one of her minions to assassinate them. Keeping her lantern lit - This is a pretty awful position to be in. The first reason is because dragons tricked into this position are often banished entirely from the tribe due to them having to break the tribe's second most important rule, the first being not to light Yami's lantern, which is to never harm the trees. The reason for this rule is explained in The Trees Cry Blood. They also often end up with dark red stains all over, giving them the appearance of being covered in blood, due to the trees' blood-like sap. Shattering the lanterns - These dragons are tasked with shattering the lanterns kept by the SkeletalWings. Their goal is to leave the tribe in complete darkness, allowing the Dragon of Shadows full access to the tribe, since she tends to travel by darkness. Tainting the food supply - Dragons tasked with this job are often only punished if caught, which is why they work when most of the tribe is asleep. This is The Dragon of Shadows' way of getting revenge of the dragons who had banished her. They often use shards of glass, poisonous plants, or dangerous insects and sprinkle them in the supplies of the butchers, fishmongers, bakers, etc. =Gallery= SkeletalWing.jpg|SkeletalWing by Mysterypine (Bones not showing) Untitled drawing.png|SkeletalWing (Digital Base by Mysterypine) =Dragon Census= Government: Spirit Guardian: Mausoleum (Mysterypine) Spirit Guardian's Successor: Nobles: Family of The Spirit Guardian and Spirit Guardian's Successor: Light Bringers: Death Speakers: Demise (Buzz The HiveWing) Forest Keepers: Palatine (Mysterypine) Lantern Makers: Commoners: Artists: Femur (Mysterypine) Citizens: Travelers: Youth: Students: Demise (Buzz The HiveWing) Penance (Buzz The HiveWing) Reincarnation (Buzz The HiveWing) Ribcage (Buzz The HiveWing) Dragonets: Other: The Cursed: =Character Form= Name: Role: Tribe (If Hybrid): Gender: Description: Personality: Other: Category:SkeletalWings Category:Discontinued Tribes